Last Modified: Monday, November 11, 2013 at 9:06 p.m.

The Gamecocks travel to Charleston, Ill., on Saturday to play the Panthers in a crucial Ohio Valley Conference game. Kickoff is at noon.

JSU (8-2, 4-2 OVC), ranked No. 22 in the Sports Network poll and 23rd in the FCS Coaches Poll, need a win to stay alive for a playoff bid.

The Gamecocks’ showing against Eastern Kentucky certainly helped their postseason case, as they dominated on both sides of the ball to record the school’s largest margin of victory in an OVC game.

“When you talk about a total team effort, that is what we got this past week,” Clark said Monday at his weekly press conference. “We saw the focus, the attention to detail and this is who we think we can be. It was a fun game to watch, and good for our players to play in front our home folks.

“We have a big one coming up this week, but it is good to be in that thought process of a playoff bid.”

Clark didn’t mince words when talking about EIU (9-1, 6-0). He called the Panthers a “great team” featuring “the best player in FCS football.”

That player is quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo. The senior leads the nation in passing, averaging 384.3 yards per game through the air. The next highest average is more than 20 yards less per game.

Garoppolo holds most of EIU’s passing records, which is quite a feat considering New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton and Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo both played — and excelled — for the Panthers.

For the season, Garoppolo has passed for 3,843 yards, 40 touchdowns and eight interceptions.

“They have a great offense and a good defense along with a great special teams unit,” Clark said. “It is going to be a huge task, but we feel like if we compete like we did Saturday, we can at least compete with anybody.”

Wide receiver Erik Lora, who is third in the nation in receiving, is the main target for Garoppolo. Lora has 1,246 yards and 17 touchdowns this season.

Sophomore defensive back Jermaine Hough is preparing for a big challenge.

“We are just looking to execute like the last game,” he said. “As a defensive back and a secondary, we are looking for a great game because they will be coming at us all game We need to contain their wide receivers and the good quarterback that they have. It will have to be a team effort, and we have to stick together.”

Junior outside linebacker Dustin Gayton said, “We love challenges like this, and coach said if we play like we did this past Saturday, that we can beat any team that we face. They are a nationally ranked team and one of the best teams in the nation, and it would be great to get the upset.”

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